adam's-needle

  • 1Adam's needle — Adam Ad am, n. 1. The name given in the Bible to the first man, the progenitor of the human race. [1913 Webster] 2. (As a symbol) Original sin; human frailty. [1913 Webster] And whipped the offending Adam out of him. Shak. [1913 Webster] {Adam s… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 2Adam's needle — ☆ Adam s needle n. any of several species (esp. Yucca filamentosa) of the yucca plant * * * …

    Universalium

  • 3Adam's needle — ☆ Adam s needle n. any of several species (esp. Yucca filamentosa) of the yucca plant …

    English World dictionary

  • 4Adam's needle — noun yucca with long stiff leaves having filamentlike appendages • Syn: ↑Adam s needle and thread, ↑spoonleaf yucca, ↑needle palm, ↑Yucca filamentosa • Hypernyms: ↑yucca …

    Useful english dictionary

  • 5Adam's needle — Yucca Yuc ca, n. [NL., from Yuca, its name in St. Domingo.] (Bot.) A genus of American liliaceous, sometimes arborescent, plants having long, pointed, and often rigid, leaves at the top of a more or less woody stem, and bearing a large panicle of …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 6Adam's needle-and-thread — noun yucca with long stiff leaves having filamentlike appendages • Syn: ↑Adam s needle, ↑spoonleaf yucca, ↑needle palm, ↑Yucca filamentosa • Hypernyms: ↑yucca * * * noun see ada …

    Useful english dictionary

  • 7Adam's needle — noun Date: circa 1760 an often cultivated yucca (Yucca filamentosa) of coastal pine barrens of the eastern United States with a basal rosette of sharp tipped leaves having loose threads along the margins …

    New Collegiate Dictionary

  • 8Adam's-needle — /ad euhmz need l/, n. a yucca, Yucca filamentosa, grown as an ornamental, having sword shaped leaves and a tall spike of creamy white, bell shaped flowers. [1750 60, Amer.] * * * …

    Universalium

  • 9adam's-needle — n. Yucca, bear grass, Spanish bayonet …

    New dictionary of synonyms

  • 10Adam's-needle — Ad′am s nee′dle n. pln a yucca plant, Yucca filamentosa, grown as an ornamental • Etymology: 1750–60, amer …

    From formal English to slang